More Than Texts Need Reform in Middle Schools

In his article, John Hubisz commented on “error-filled physical science textbooks.” In particular, he wrote: “Many of the errors involved sloppy use of language… as in ‘an acceleration is a change in velocity….’ Note the use of ‘change in velocity’ instead of the correct ‘change in velocity with respect to time.’ That imprecision was a common error.” Apparently, this error is found worldwide and in areas other than textbooks.

For example, there was a German court case reported last year in the influential German weekly magazine Der Spiegel (issue 16, p. 196, 2002). The article carried the title “Schraube im Nacken, “ that is, “A Screw in the Nape of the Neck.” A whiplash victim had suffered such serious damage to his neck (cervical spine) that he required a few screws to immobilize it permanently. But in the trial, the court expert, a “human biologist and professional engineer (Diplomingenieur),” testified that the victim’s head had sustained only a change in velocity from “12.4 to 15 kilometers per hour,” which was, he said, insufficient to cause such a serious injury. The judge in the case evidently knew his physics better than the court expert. The victim, as I later learned, was awarded €35 000 (about $40 000) for pain and suffering.